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{\vern16437}}\widowctrl\ftnbj\aenddoc\makebackup\noxlattoyen\expshrtn\noultrlspc\dntblnsbdb\nospaceforul\formshade\horzdoc\dgmargin\dghspace180\dgvspace180\dghorigin1800\dgvorigin1440\dghshow1\dgvshow1 \jexpand\viewkind1\viewscale100\pgbrdrhead\pgbrdrfoot\splytwnine\ftnlytwnine\htmautsp\nolnhtadjtbl\useltbaln\alntblind\lytcalctblwd\lyttblrtgr\lnbrkrule\nobrkwrptbl\viewnobound1\snaptogridincell\allowfieldendsel\wrppunct\asianbrkrule\rsidroot12678549 \fet0\sectd \linex0\headery708\footery708\colsx708\endnhere\sectlinegrid360\sectdefaultcl\sftnbj {\*\pnseclvl1\pnucrm\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxta .}}{\*\pnseclvl2\pnucltr\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxta .}}{\*\pnseclvl3 \pndec\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxta .}}{\*\pnseclvl4\pnlcltr\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxta )}}{\*\pnseclvl5\pndec\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxtb (}{\pntxta )}}{\*\pnseclvl6\pnlcltr\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxtb (}{\pntxta )}} {\*\pnseclvl7\pnlcrm\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxtb (}{\pntxta )}}{\*\pnseclvl8\pnlcltr\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxtb (}{\pntxta )}}{\*\pnseclvl9\pnlcrm\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxtb (}{\pntxta )}}\pard\plain \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 \fs40\lang5129\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp5129\langfenp1033 {\insrsid9664524\charrsid9664524 Sepia}{\insrsid9141444\charrsid9664524 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid9664524 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid1792966 I was called when }{\fs24\insrsid9664524 Lady Blackmere went into labour at eight o\rquote clock}{\fs24\insrsid2060719 in the evening}{\fs24\insrsid1792966 .}{\fs24\insrsid9664524 It was}{\fs24\insrsid12000947 , though, an easy confinement,}{\fs24\insrsid9664524 being }{\fs24\insrsid11877386 H}{\fs24\insrsid9664524 er }{\fs24\insrsid11877386 Ladyship\rquote s }{ \fs24\insrsid9664524 third, and after }{\fs24\insrsid3824162 securing another fine young son for his Lordship I left the house in Grosvenor Square at about one in the morning.}{\fs24\insrsid9664524 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid3824162 The fog had grown}{\fs24\insrsid5847532 thicker during the }{\fs24\insrsid1792966 night}{\fs24\insrsid3824162 }{ \fs24\insrsid2060719 as}{\fs24\insrsid3824162 I was inside, and had become what }{\fs24\insrsid5847532 the working classes delight in referring to as \lquote a }{\fs24\insrsid11877386 real }{\fs24\insrsid5847532 pea-souper\rquote . His Lordship tried to press the use of his carriage upon me but as my chambers were near}{\fs24\insrsid12743580 and as I anyway desired a walk to clear my head of the fumes of the laudanum used earlier as well as the somewhat bucolic results of }{ \fs24\insrsid11877386 his Lordship\rquote s relief and pleasure at the results of the evening, }{\fs24\insrsid1792966 celebrated }{\fs24\insrsid12021307 with a very fine }{\fs24\insrsid2116401 double-malt}{\fs24\insrsid12021307 , }{\fs24\insrsid11877386 I declined his generosity. \par }{\fs24\insrsid8336450 I}{\fs24\insrsid11750007 t would have been easy to}{\fs24\insrsid8336450 regret }{\fs24\insrsid11090359 that decision}{\fs24\insrsid8336450 , although in truth a carriage in thick fog can be a somewhat hazardous conveyance in its own right. There was little enough horse-traffic around at that time of the morning, of course, }{\fs24\insrsid9046468 - I saw perhaps one water-cart and}{ \fs24\insrsid11877386 }{\fs24\insrsid9046468 a brewer\rquote s dray delivering \endash but even the most sensible of horses can be too easily spooked by the unexpected approaching it in fog and, on balance, I preferred my own two feet.}{ \fs24\insrsid3824162 \par }{\fs24\insrsid9046468 The streets }{\fs24\insrsid14618858 in town }{\fs24\insrsid9046468 were }{\fs24\insrsid14618858 almost }{\fs24\insrsid9046468 deserted of pedestrian traffic}{\fs24\insrsid14618858 as well, for the }{\fs24\insrsid11750007 t}{ \fs24\insrsid14618858 heatres }{\fs24\insrsid11750007 and public houses }{\fs24\insrsid14618858 were long closed and all decent people }{\fs24\insrsid1796895 snug}{\fs24\insrsid14618858 abed.}{\fs24\insrsid12721281 A few }{\fs24\insrsid2060719 lone }{ \fs24\insrsid12721281 figures thickly wrapped and huddled against the chill damp of the fog and the November night scurried guiltily past me, probably servants hurrying back to their employment after illicit assignation}{\fs24\insrsid12021307 s}{ \fs24\insrsid11750007 , but for long stretches of streets so bustling and busy during the day I was alone}{\fs24\insrsid2060719 in a surreal silence}{\fs24\insrsid12021307 . \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid15279273 As I strode along t}{\fs24\insrsid12021307 he click of my footfalls on the pavement }{\fs24\insrsid9588488 sounded }{ \fs24\insrsid5915740 strangely muffled and distant}{\fs24\insrsid9588488 }{\fs24\insrsid7864838 while}{\fs24\insrsid9588488 the heart of the great city}{\fs24\insrsid12721281 }{\fs24\insrsid9588488 seemed extra-ordinarily still and empty}{ \fs24\insrsid7864838 . W}{\fs24\insrsid9588488 ith all its familiar sights }{\fs24\insrsid1116089 a}{\fs24\insrsid8794059 s well as}{\fs24\insrsid1116089 the more mundane architecture of the streets I knew so well }{\fs24\insrsid9588488 swallowed in the darkness and the fog}{\fs24\insrsid1116089 it would have been easy to }{\fs24\insrsid15279273 imagine }{\fs24\insrsid1116089 oneself in Paris, Berlin or even some }{\fs24\insrsid15279273 dark }{\fs24\insrsid1116089 Mephistophelean underworld}{\fs24\insrsid15279273 . \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid15279273 For the fog, thick enough in its own right}{\fs24\insrsid15680535 and heavy with the salty tang of the Thames, had been greatly added to by the tens of thousands of fires burning in the hearths of the great city as well as the fumes and furnaces of the industries crowding around its edge. }{\fs24\insrsid12089792 Good Welsh coal adding its carbon particulates and sulphur gasses to the damp moisture of the air and turning the fog into what the popular papers with their appalling disregard for the proper use of the English language were beginning to call \lquote smog\rquote }{\fs24\insrsid3098141 ,}{\fs24\insrsid14753229 while }{\fs24\insrsid8588694 bay}{\fs24\insrsid14753229 ing for the autho}{\fs24\insrsid3869035 rities to do something about it}{\fs24\insrsid14753229 as though there was something which could be done.}{\fs24\insrsid15279273 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid14753229 True I could smell the soot and sulphur in the air with the salt}{\fs24\insrsid16271516 , and knew that my surgery would be full all too soon on the morrow}{\fs24\insrsid1922111 that was already today}{\fs24\insrsid16271516 with the consumptive and the asthmatic coughing blood and phlegm onto my carpets; that there would be }{ \fs24\insrsid8794059 more }{\fs24\insrsid16271516 death certificates to sign giving pulmonary }{\fs24\insrsid8875967 inflammatio n as the cause of death, yet are we to stop people burning coal and let the Welsh miners and their families starve? Do we stop the wheels of industry for fear of fog and a few deaths?}{\fs24\insrsid11090359 Of course not.}{\fs24\insrsid14753229 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid11090359 The Metropolitan }{\fs24\insrsid8588694 gas }{\fs24\insrsid11090359 st}{\fs24\insrsid3098141 reet-lighting was functioning, e ach standard creating a }{\fs24\insrsid12875819 g}{\fs24\insrsid3098141 lobe of yellow light }{\fs24\insrsid932677 outside of which nothing more than the indistinct loom of buildings could be seen while inside each globe the gas-light and sooty sulphur of the fog }{\fs24\insrsid6117146 combined to }{\fs24\insrsid12875819 paint}{\fs24\insrsid6117146 the immediate scene in soft, monochrome }{\fs24\insrsid14843392 tints}{\fs24\insrsid6117146 , a circular }{\fs24\insrsid12848970 sepia }{\fs24\insrsid6117146 photographer\rquote s plate of glistening pavement, }{\fs24\insrsid11427995 blank wall and blind }{\fs24\insrsid7669198 , black}{\fs24\insrsid11427995 window}{\fs24\insrsid14843392 s}{\fs24\insrsid11427995 in a row along the street.}{\fs24\insrsid11090359 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid11427995 It was in one such globe that I saw the girl. \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid4079718 Some wayward, }{\fs24\insrsid6692205 lazy }{\fs24\insrsid3869035 fold}{\fs24\insrsid6692205 of air had thickened the fog }{ \fs24\insrsid3869035 behind her}{\fs24\insrsid6692205 and }{\fs24\insrsid3869035 as }{\fs24\insrsid6692205 I stepped into the pool of lamplight }{\fs24\insrsid12848970 she seemed to be standing}{\fs24\insrsid15664470 on some }{\fs24\insrsid14843392 silent}{\fs24\insrsid1915015 , empty}{\fs24\insrsid14843392 }{\fs24\insrsid15664470 stage with a backdrop just of soft brown and pale yellow }{\fs24\insrsid1921733 hues }{\fs24\insrsid15664470 washed over a silken}{\fs24\insrsid15532785 , folded}{ \fs24\insrsid15664470 }{\fs24\insrsid15532785 drape. I had caught her unawares and for a moment, an eternity of a heart-beat, }{\fs24\insrsid8915349 she stood }{\fs24\insrsid2429204 lost }{\fs24\insrsid8915349 within herself, alone}{ \fs24\insrsid2429204 }{\fs24\insrsid8915349 in her }{\fs24\insrsid224422 private u}{\fs24\insrsid12931183 niverse }{\fs24\insrsid8915349 of sepia fog. \par Indecision}{\fs24\insrsid6692205 }{\fs24\insrsid8915349 informed her. }{\fs24\insrsid13522703 Her feet were at rest but slightly }{\fs24\insrsid4727399 apart}{\fs24\insrsid13522703 as though ready to bear her }{\fs24\insrsid13125124 ahead or }{ \fs24\insrsid13522703 to the right or the left once the decision was made and her whole body was poised on }{\fs24\insrsid1921733 a}{\fs24\insrsid13522703 very }{\fs24\insrsid12931183 needle-point}{\fs24\insrsid13522703 of balance}{ \fs24\insrsid15691492 , motionless and steady}{\fs24\insrsid1921733 ,}{\fs24\insrsid15691492 yet just a }{\fs24\insrsid2630522 slight inclination further}{\fs24\insrsid12931183 , the tiniest relaxation of her stance,}{\fs24\insrsid2630522 and commitment would be made, the motion begun, straight}{\fs24\insrsid1921733 }{\fs24\insrsid2630522 ahead or left or right}{\fs24\insrsid14239889 .}{\fs24\insrsid2630522 }{\fs24\insrsid14239889 I}{\fs24\insrsid529430 rredeemable}{ \fs24\insrsid14239889 . }{\fs24\insrsid529430 }{\fs24\insrsid14239889 F}{\fs24\insrsid529430 or ever.}{\fs24\insrsid8794059 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid529430 Her hands were held before her stomach, fingertips lightly kissing as she looked down at them unseeing, ticking off the thoughts in her mind, }{\fs24\insrsid12931183 balancing the weights}{\fs24\insrsid13125124 of each pro and each con}{\fs24\insrsid14239889 .}{ \fs24\insrsid12931183 }{\fs24\insrsid14239889 Heart against mind}{\fs24\insrsid5584015 ,}{\fs24\insrsid14239889 perhaps. Duty against inclination. Desire against conscience. }{\fs24\insrsid224422 Right or left. Forward or back. A girl at a cross-roads, lost in a fog}{\fs24\insrsid14052947 .}{\fs24\insrsid529430 \par }{\fs24\insrsid346865 I came to her attention}{\fs24\insrsid2574602 and her face half-turned to me, the whole }{\fs24\insrsid2429204 fragile edifice of her contemplations crumbling as I unwittingly intruded into her }{\fs24\insrsid738708 world. Yet if she felt irritation or annoyance she gave no sign. Just a slight, quirky smile at some inner amusement at herself, or at the world.}{\fs24\insrsid14052947 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid738708 I }{\fs24\insrsid14434640 stopped short so as not to alarm her, for even the wealthier parts of London know footpads and worse while the constabulary almost entirely occupies itself with the rougher boroughs, and I }{\fs24\insrsid738708 saw her briefly appraise me and judge me}{ \fs24\insrsid14434640 .}{\fs24\insrsid13002608 Presumably my patent shoes, the sharp creases in my trousers, the tails of my frock-coat and the glint of the diamond pin in the silken sheen of my cravat put any fears she might have harboured at ease for she }{\fs24\insrsid3241181 did no more than hold me in that enigmatic gaze, her o}{\fs24\insrsid6572543 wn decision postponed while she waited the outcome of this unexpected meeting.}{\fs24\insrsid738708 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid6572543 I raised my hat and bowed slightly. \'93Good evening,\'94 I bid her. \'93I hope I did not alarm you.\'94 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid6572543 She was quite exquisitely beautiful}{\fs24\insrsid16217754 . Tall and straight, a finely-featured face and long, musician \rquote s hands}{\fs24\insrsid9655347 with her fingertips still unconsciously, gently}{\fs24\insrsid1915015 ,}{\fs24\insrsid9655347 }{\fs24\insrsid1669613 to}{\fs24\insrsid9655347 ying with some small object I could not see \endash a lover\rquote s ring returned, perhaps? A coin to toss, heads or tails}{\fs24\insrsid6174057 into the future? She was bareheaded with loose and flowing hair to her shoulders, a strange }{\fs24\insrsid4409116 vanity in the present fashion yet for her somehow right, for not only could no }{\fs24\insrsid664807 bonnet}{\fs24\insrsid4409116 have set off that face as well as did her natural flow of hair, }{\fs24\insrsid16139534 the very absence of a hat shouted at an independence of thought and refusal to }{\fs24\insrsid5656636 accord to expectation}{\fs24\insrsid9571407 which was apparent in }{\fs24\insrsid859348 the confidence of }{\fs24\insrsid9571407 her stance as she considered a chance-met stranger in a city, a }{\fs24\insrsid16395826 fog-bound }{\fs24\insrsid9571407 world, of just two}{\fs24\insrsid5656636 .}{\fs24\insrsid6572543 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid5656636 Her gown, too, was simplicity itself. No layers of lace}{\fs24\insrsid10040937 or bows and bustles with which women are wont to adorn themselves to hide plainness of face or poverty of wit.}{\fs24\insrsid13715870 A simple satin, as I guessed. Cream in colour, though it was hard to tell in the tan-stained}{\fs24\insrsid859348 gaslight. Cream, though, would have been }{\fs24\insrsid12785943 perfect}{\fs24\insrsid859348 , the choice of genius as it }{\fs24\insrsid682914 underplayed the soft golden sheen of her hair, and by underplaying it made it all the clearer. A deeply }{ \fs24\insrsid6571066 ruff}{\fs24\insrsid682914 ed }{\fs24\insrsid8543778 hem and cuffs lent femininity but no softness while, most startling, an underskirt of virgin white}{\fs24\insrsid330294 revealed at the front by a scooping parting of her overdress from her ankles to her waist declar}{\fs24\insrsid9195711 ing}{\fs24\insrsid330294 , nay shout}{\fs24\insrsid9195711 ing}{\fs24\insrsid330294 , her sexuality}{\fs24\insrsid9195711 while yet placing a shield as }{\fs24\insrsid8476961 firm and }{\fs24\insrsid9195711 bold as that of any medieval knight be}{\fs24\insrsid8476961 tween}{\fs24\insrsid9195711 her }{\fs24\insrsid8476961 shy }{\fs24\insrsid9195711 sex}{ \fs24\insrsid8476961 and the lusting world}{\fs24\insrsid9195711 .}{\fs24\insrsid5656636 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid13987781 Sheer silk stockings and light shoes with strange raised heels that would surely make dancing difficult completed the ensemble, and the enigma.}{\fs24\insrsid9195711 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid12785943 For it seemed inconceivable t}{\fs24\insrsid16678019 hat she should be unaccompanied at such a place and such a time}{ \fs24\insrsid12785943 . A serving-girl creeping back from some lover\rquote s arms }{\fs24\insrsid277877 might}{\fs24\insrsid16593144 be alone,}{\fs24\insrsid2885491 except that no}{\fs24\insrsid12785943 serving girl would }{\fs24\insrsid10383395 surely }{\fs24\insrsid12785943 dress as she was dress}{\fs24\insrsid2885491 ed or return my study with such }{\fs24\insrsid277877 a calm scrutiny of her own. Yet no daughter of any family of worth would dare dress as boldly as she was}{ \fs24\insrsid9709383 dressed, invite such scandal as she would draw were she to attend a function of quality so attired}{\fs24\insrsid3089737 , let alone walk the streets of London in the early hours unchaperoned}{\fs24\insrsid9709383 . What wealthy merchant would allow his daughter to risk his hopes of a good match for her by }{\fs24\insrsid15809929 declaring so boldly that she was not }{\fs24\insrsid7088252 just }{\fs24\insrsid15809929 the match of any man, she was his better? \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid15809929 Ah, but an actress! Not one of those who declare themselves actresses yet pursue another}{\fs24\insrsid16593144 profession} {\fs24\insrsid5864996 although it, to}{\fs24\insrsid10383395 o}{\fs24\insrsid5864996 , involves dissimulation}{\fs24\insrsid15809929 .}{\fs24\insrsid277877 }{\fs24\insrsid5864996 No, a}{\fs24\insrsid6358965 real }{\fs24\insrsid7419392 thespian}{ \fs24\insrsid6358965 . Where else could a woman }{\fs24\insrsid7419392 gain}{\fs24\insrsid6358965 such poise and self-confidence than on a stage }{\fs24\insrsid12650139 in the gaze of}{\fs24\insrsid6358965 hundreds? }{\fs24\insrsid7419392 How other than secured by her talents could a woman acquire such }{\fs24\insrsid5864996 an air }{\fs24\insrsid10383395 of }{\fs24\insrsid7419392 independence? Even the odditie}{\fs24\insrsid12386494 s of her costume wer e explained for surely Electra might be portrayed as such on stage, or Perdita }{\fs24\insrsid8476961 in her days }{\fs24\insrsid12386494 as a shepherdess}{\fs24\insrsid1189290 .}{\fs24\insrsid13987781 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid1189290 \'93Sir,\'94 she returned my bow with a slight one of her own. \'93You did not.\'94 I had for a moment forgotten my question but covered the }{\fs24\insrsid7088252 time I required to recall it }{\fs24\insrsid1189290 by replacing my hat. \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid2033716 Her voice was low and sure, soft and velvet. The voice surely of an actress for it bore no hint of accent or station.}{ \fs24\insrsid8875967 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid2033716 \'93May I perhaps be of assistance?\rquote I offered. \'93I am returning }{\fs24\insrsid8591000 to my rooms }{ \fs24\insrsid2033716 from a confinement}{\fs24\insrsid8591000 , }{\fs24\insrsid1709976 but}{\fs24\insrsid8591000 am too much the Englishman to allow a lady to walk the night streets unaccompanied.\'94 I }{\fs24\insrsid12940646 slightly }{ \fs24\insrsid8591000 raised the leather bag containing my obstetrical instruments}{\fs24\insrsid12940646 to reinforce my claim although she would, of course, already have seen it.}{\fs24\insrsid2033716 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid4023930 If she saw my remark as a }{\fs24\insrsid1709976 comment on}{\fs24\insrsid4023930 her predicament, or a slight against who}{ \fs24\insrsid8738289 mso}{\fs24\insrsid4023930 ever might have placed her in it}{\fs24\insrsid1709976 ,}{\fs24\insrsid4023930 she gave no sign but merely regarded me with that bold scrutiny for a moment more and than inclined her head in assent.}{ \fs24\insrsid12940646 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid4023930 \'93Sir}{\fs24\insrsid15421777 , I would not }{\fs24\insrsid1709976 be so churlish as}{\fs24\insrsid15421777 to keep you fr om your bed. Yet I fear that in this }{\fs24\insrsid8133133 aureate haze I have misplaced my direction. If you could indicate the way to my destination I would be beholden to you.\'94 She named her }{\fs24\insrsid1704711 objective, a street of private houses of quality many occupied, I knew, by foreign nobility w}{\fs24\insrsid7955492 ho }{\fs24\insrsid14176627 main}{\fs24\insrsid7955492 tained}{\fs24\insrsid1704711 residences in London}{\fs24\insrsid11548089 .}{ \fs24\insrsid4023930 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid11548089 Not an actress, then? A foreign princess, perhaps, well-schooled in the English language and manners yet not quite perfect in their application for I was sure she had not been mocking my correctness in her reply}{\fs24\insrsid13766605 . Royalty, surely, would explain such composure, such elegance, perhaps even such beauty, and foreign fashion could explain her attire, yet surely no princess of however fallen a }{\fs24\insrsid12020220 Royal H}{\fs24\insrsid13766605 ouse would be }{ \fs24\insrsid5344 allowed}{\fs24\insrsid13766605 alone in a London street at night.}{\fs24\insrsid11548089 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid12020220 \'93It would be my pleasure to accompany you there,\'94 I told her, sincerely. }{\fs24\insrsid5344 \'93 And men of medicine and their beds are often strangers.\'94 }{\fs24\insrsid12020220 I knew the way well and in truth it was not far, yet I was equally sure she was well aware of the way also, and that the direc}{\fs24\insrsid546334 tion she had misplaced was of another kind altogether. Indeed so sure of this was I that I sought a way to offer her the opportunity to pursue some other course.}{\fs24\insrsid12020220 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid546334 \'93Although if there is some other destination you have in mind? Or perhaps some sanctuary you would seek}{ \fs24\insrsid7999243 until th}{\fs24\insrsid5904106 at}{\fs24\insrsid7999243 destination becomes clearer in your mind?\'94}{\fs24\insrsid546334 \par }{\fs24\insrsid10643503 Her laugh was light and }{\fs24\insrsid7545673 mischievous}{\fs24\insrsid10643503 .}{\fs24\insrsid7545673 \'93No, sir,\'94 she }{\fs24\insrsid15676758 exclaimed. \'93I will have done with obfustication tonight}{ \fs24\insrsid2307539 . Pray lead on.\'94}{\fs24\insrsid10643503 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid2307539 I took her at her word and stepped past her, and she fell into place by my side. \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid2307539 She was perfection. Not as tall as at first I had thought, a trick of the fog perhaps, }{\fs24\insrsid2186258 she moved as smoothly as the mist o}{\fs24\insrsid14176627 ver}{\fs24\insrsid2186258 a lake. Despite the hindrance of the dress and petticoats beneath she matched my pace}{\fs24\insrsid9704192 with just the faintest \lquote slip slip\rquote whisper of the silken }{\fs24\insrsid9837539 fabric}{\fs24\insrsid9704192 against her legs. The loose flounces of the edging to her dress}{\fs24\insrsid9837539 obscured the l}{\fs24\insrsid1383069 ay}{\fs24\insrsid9837539 of the }{ \fs24\insrsid1383069 material }{\fs24\insrsid9837539 above her breasts}{\fs24\insrsid9837539\charrsid9837539 }{\fs24\insrsid1383069 but the }{\fs24\insrsid9837539 cut of the cloth}{\fs24\insrsid1383069 to either side betrayed a soft fullness there. She was divine. Angelic.}{\fs24\insrsid15956723 I loved her.}{\fs24\insrsid2307539 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid1383069 We walked in silence. }{\fs24\insrsid12063989 That enigmatic smile on her face told me that she was well aware of my burning curiosity. Who was she? Why had she been alone in the fog in the early hours of the morning? What had been the }{\fs24\insrsid2384616 decision she had been on the verg e of taking when I had walked into her? What might that decision have been had I not? Why now was she letting me take her }{\fs24\insrsid12528252 so meekly one way when it had been so hard for her }{\fs24\insrsid5904106 to decide on it previously}{ \fs24\insrsid12528252 . I wanted to know and yet, more, I wanted not to know. I wanted her to remain for ever a mystery.}{\fs24\insrsid2123159 The Mystery that is Woman.}{\fs24\insrsid1383069 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid12528252 I stopped. Buildings loomed softly above us to }{\fs24\insrsid10372059 one}{\fs24\insrsid12528252 side in the }{ \fs24\insrsid5851387 amber-stained fog and the pools of gaslight receded ahead }{\fs24\insrsid10372059 of us and behind }{\fs24\insrsid5851387 but }{\fs24\insrsid10372059 to }{\fs24\insrsid5851387 the other side was a thick darkness.}{ \fs24\insrsid12528252 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid5851387 \'93We could save a little by cutting through the gardens,\'94 I said, \'93Or stay on the road and }{\fs24\insrsid2123159 take the long way a}{\fs24\insrsid5851387 round, if you prefer.\'94 \par }{\fs24\insrsid2123159 \'93Life, sir, is too short to take the long way around,\'94 she }{\fs24\insrsid10372059 observed}{\fs24\insrsid7676544 lightly}{\fs24\insrsid14294670 . \'93Let us cut through the gardens.\'94}{\fs24\insrsid2123159 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid14294670 I held the wrought-iron gate for her and then followed her inside. Enough light leaked from the gas-lamps on the road to }{ \fs24\insrsid8610378 make the path through the grass and around the flowerbeds a pale glimmer in the night-shrouded fog, but the caverns beneath the trees were inky and thick.}{\fs24\insrsid14294670 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid8610378 She died quickly and, I hope, easily for medical men }{\fs24\insrsid4930049 trained to}{\fs24\insrsid4930049\charrsid4930049 }{\fs24\insrsid4930049 give life and preserve it }{\fs24\insrsid860103 }{\fs24\insrsid4930049 know how to take it}{\fs24\insrsid8610378 \endash a thumb on the carotid artery to starve the brain of blood, a pinch on the }{\fs24\insrsid10450157 oesophagus}{\fs24\insrsid8610378 to }{\fs24\insrsid10831828 stop the lungs, and the scream. She struggled like a bird in my hand for a long moment and then was still, and I laid her down on the fog-soaked grass.}{\fs24\insrsid8610378 \par }{\fs24\insrsid10831828 I was shaking and trembling, for I hate }{\fs24\insrsid16523122 the }{\fs24\insrsid10831828 killing. }{\fs24\insrsid16523122 It has to be done, a necessary vileness I must endure although it leaves me sick}{\fs24\insrsid11225727 ened for who apart from a soldier on the battlefield }{\fs24\insrsid8986076 sees so closely}{\fs24\insrsid11225727 the finality of death, }{\fs24\insrsid8986076 becomes }{\fs24\insrsid11225727 so aware of its very utterness}{\fs24\insrsid8986076 ,}{ \fs24\insrsid8986076\charrsid8986076 }{\fs24\insrsid8986076 as the physician}{\fs24\insrsid11225727 . Until her life had gone I was so terribly aware that it was not too late; that I could pull back from the awful act }{\fs24\insrsid9188103 an d let her live on with her imperfections, her disease. For the short while she fought me, I fought me too: fought the sentiment that }{\fs24\insrsid2644451 urged me to let her live }{\fs24\insrsid11632219 on }{\fs24\insrsid2644451 regardless for she, I knew, would never accept that}{\fs24\insrsid4930049 what }{\fs24\insrsid4741685 I}{\fs24\insrsid4930049 was doing}{\fs24\insrsid2644451 was for her own good}{\fs24\insrsid4741685 ,}{\fs24\insrsid2644451 and at times it is hard for me to keep that clear vision in my mind.}{\fs24\insrsid10831828 \par }{\fs24\insrsid13193462 But now she}{\fs24\insrsid15414378 was still, and I could put the dreadful act behind me and move on. }{\fs24\insrsid2644451 \par }{\fs24\insrsid15414378 Despite the dark it was easy to undress her and my instruments are always carefully placed in their proper places in my bag. }{\fs24\insrsid6389375 First remove that disgusting, disfiguring hair on the pubis. Then, with scalpel and the most delicate of touches}{\fs24\insrsid16532406 ,}{\fs24\insrsid6389375 excise the }{\fs24\insrsid16663455 uterus}{\fs24\insrsid16532406 and }{ \fs24\insrsid10058582 ovaries}{\fs24\insrsid16663455 . No light except the faintest of pale shimmers that was her body in the blanket of black fog to aid me but I had need of none, for how well do my hands know those parts of a woman.}{ \fs24\insrsid15414378 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid5320107 {\fs24\insrsid16663455 It was done}{\fs24\insrsid4748527 . She was pure. She was perfection. }{\fs24\insrsid16532406 No more would that disgusting }{\fs24\insrsid9008698 menstrual flow}{\fs24\insrsid16532406 }{\fs24\insrsid9008698 give monthly reminder of her base nature. She was free of }{\fs24\insrsid8669697 that constant }{\fs24\insrsid5532111 animal }{ \fs24\insrsid8669697 urge to }{\fs24\insrsid5320107 \lquote live in the rank sweat of an enseamed bed, stew\rquote d in corruption and making }{\fs24\insrsid14971806 love }{\fs24\insrsid5320107 over the nasty sty\rquote as the Bard so }{ \fs24\insrsid14971806 forcefully put it.}{\fs24\insrsid8669697 }{\fs24\insrsid16532406 }{\fs24\insrsid4748527 Never would she be marred by th}{\fs24\insrsid14971806 ose}{\fs24\insrsid4748527 disgusting sweats and slimes that had reduced}{ \fs24\insrsid9188204 the usually elegant Angela }{\fs24\insrsid4748527 Blackmere to the level of a}{\fs24\insrsid9188204 beast}{\fs24\insrsid4748527 those few hours ago.}{\fs24\insrsid4224138 She would never experience the agony of an alien body splitting her }{\fs24\insrsid860103 own }{\fs24\insrsid4224138 in its ruthless drive to be }{\fs24\insrsid860103 separate}{\fs24\insrsid3564272 . The bloody, feral indignities of the childbed would never be hers to endure.}{\fs24\insrsid16663455 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid5320107 {\fs24\insrsid3564272 Outwardly she had seemed an angel but I}{\fs24\insrsid6175672 had known that she still carried within her the disease of }{ \fs24\insrsid3698656 the base animal Mr. Darwin}{\fs24\insrsid14971806 has shown }{\fs24\insrsid3698656 is ancestor to us all. }{\fs24\insrsid14971806 T}{\fs24\insrsid3698656 hanks to me she, whoever she was, is free of that now}{\fs24\insrsid14971806 . A}{\fs24\insrsid3698656 n Angel indeed.}{\fs24\insrsid3564272 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid5320107 {\fs24\insrsid11295597 I left the gardens hurriedly and resumed my course home. }{\fs24\insrsid1863469 Soon the streets of the City would be full again, of people hurrying through the cold, }{\fs24\insrsid13189437 clammy, }{\fs24\insrsid1130104 persistent}{\fs24\insrsid1863469 fog}{\fs24\insrsid13189437 in the yellow dawn}{\fs24\insrsid1863469 , and I knew the }{\fs24\insrsid12717212 newsvendors}{\fs24\insrsid1863469 would be crying out }{\fs24\insrsid1130104 laviciously }{\fs24\insrsid1863469 the }{\fs24\insrsid4142493 lure}{\fs24\insrsid6761835 of their wares. \'93Ripper strikes again.\'94 }{\fs24\insrsid3698656 \par }\pard\plain \ql \li0\ri0\nowidctlpar\faauto\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid2181221 \fs24\lang1033\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp1033\langfenp1033 {\insrsid9723169 }{\insrsid6761835 Jack the Ripper}{\insrsid1130104 , they}{\insrsid4804351 hav}{ \insrsid1130104 e named me}{\insrsid6761835 . }{\insrsid736188 So }{\insrsid1845234 common, }{\insrsid736188 brutal and }{\insrsid6101861 coarse}{\insrsid736188 . If only they }{\insrsid9390604 could see the loveliness I do}{\insrsid736188 .}{ \insrsid10173277 If }{\insrsid4681055 only }{\insrsid10173277 they could meet an Angel in a sepia fog}{\insrsid12717212 and }{\insrsid9723169 have the }{\insrsid15092171 power to make her fly}{\insrsid8608073 .}{\fs20\insrsid2181221\charrsid2181221 }{ \fs20\insrsid2181221 \par \par \par }\pard \ql \li0\ri0\widctlpar\faauto\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid15675078 {\fs20\insrsid15675078\charrsid15675078 \'a9 Rex Antioch}{\fs20\insrsid2181221 \par }\pard \ql \li0\ri0\nowidctlpar\faauto\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid2181221 {\fs20\insrsid2181221\charrsid12714995 Written for ASSTR\rquote s 20 03 anniversary celebration and, personally, to celebrate the awesome talent of Jonathon Earl Bowser. One of the objectives of the celebration is to acknowledge those who make a donation to ASSTR. ASSTR relies on your donations to keep doing its great work . }{\fs20\insrsid2181221 P}{\fs20\insrsid2181221\charrsid12714995 lease make a donation if you can. You can find details on how to donate at http://www.asstr.org/donations.html . \par \'93S}{\fs20\insrsid2181221 epia}{\fs20\insrsid2181221\charrsid12714995 \'94 can be found at http://www.jonathonart.com/drawing1.html \par }\pard \ql \fi567\li0\ri0\nowidctlpar\faauto\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid2181221 {\insrsid2181221\charrsid2638092 \par }\pard\plain \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid5320107 \fs40\lang5129\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp5129\langfenp1033 {\fs24\lang1033\langfe1033\langnp1033\insrsid6761835\charrsid2181221 \par }{\fs24\insrsid2181221 \par \par \par }{\fs24\insrsid5851387 \par }{\fs24\insrsid5344 \par }{\fs24\insrsid10058582 \par }{\fs24\insrsid7999243 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid5320107 {\fs24\insrsid13766605 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid8591000 \par }\pard \s15\ql \fi567\li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid9664524 {\fs24\insrsid1116089 }{\fs24\insrsid9046468\charrsid9664524 \par }}